Topic: Do you require income verification as part of their application process?

Would anyone from a nationwide management company or that manages over 50,000 apartments be willing to share if they require income verification as part of their application process - meaning that an applicant must submit verifiable proof of income at the time of application?

Yes we do.

We are 30000 units, but yes we do too.

Yes

Yes, the top 10 management companies in the US do require it.

Yes!

We ask for 2 most recent pay stubs

Everyone does,

I've never heard of anyone not requiring it honestly

We don't require it

Interesting. Do you have an income requirement?

3x the rent in gross income

how do you verify that then?

we don't credit screening takes care of the important stuff. If their credit/criminal/eviction is clear, they most likely pay rent.

Kelly Marie Vidal what type of property are you at?
How's the demographic?
How many evictions do you have monthly?
Just curious how effective it is.

class A in Houston. We hardly ever file (maybe twice per year). For us, as long as the files are approved properly we don't have issues. There are fraud alerts and stuff to catch while screening them.

Of course

I get check stubs, if they have direct deposit I get copies if the account it is deposited into and match amounts and dates. Unfortunately there are too many fakes. I have also been known to google earth the address of the employer. Of course there is fax and email also.

We aren’t quite that high but don’t have an income requirement or verify income. Solely based on credit history and I love it!

what type of property are you at?
How's the demographic?
How many evictions do you have monthly?
Just curious how effective it is.

Kayshia Nelson DM the residents are great! Demographic is great. I file none-2 evictions a month. I really do think it’s just as effective. Credit history tells a lot more than how much they make

Agreed it's an important part of the verification process.

The small Realty firm I worked in required it.

Michele Liakos how are you doing? As you know, we lease properties nationwide for various management companies. We find a few of the management companies are changing their policies. A few properties that we leased up recently do not require proof of income. They pull credit and leave it at that. It was strange but it works.

Yes, my company requires it.

Yes, required

Required backup proof before move in.

Camden Property Trust does not require it.

Why wouldn’t you?? We require three times the rent.

I've never heard of companies not requiring it...I couldn't see why. Seems like quite the risk go just with what's stated on apps...

Amanda Lynn Lazaro some companies want to approve on the spot and get the lease signed. I have worked for such a company in the past and was surprised by how little it affected our collections.

Of course.

Definitely verify income! I think it would be crazy not to!!!

We require they make 3x the rent and provide proof of this... minimum 30 days worth of paystubs or income verification

One company I worked for did not require proof unless prompted by the screening results to get it. The screening company accessed IRS records as part of the process, so if they weren't paying appropriate taxes on what they claimed their income was (or the employer's payroll taxes paid didn't match up), screening said "prove it." But every other company I have worked for required proof.

What does the size of the company matter? Yes you need proof and then call to verify employment

We require verification of employment and rental references on top of credit and background checks.

We dont require it. Nor did my previous company. I thought it was crazy at first, but, with both companies, the properties I was on had extremely low delinquencies. I questioned why we didn't and the response made perfect sense... If they pass the credit check, they obviously know how to manage their money. Why do we need to question them for proof? Additionally, we don't tell people we aren't going to ask for verification. So they most likely will put in an accurate amount.

We require proof of income: 3x's the rent. Guarantor's must make 5x's the rent to qualify. We will accept paystubs (30 days), offer letter, SSI/Disability benefit docs, retirement account docs, or we have a verification form the employer can complete.

Absolutely! Need to know source of income. No different than buying a car or home. Can you afford it?

They have to list their income on the application, however I do not verify it until I am ready to offer them an apartment

We oversee properties that are income based, so most definitely we do require to verify income, past rental experience and the credit history.

I feel even if we were no income base we would still want to verify income so we can see that they will be able to pay the rent and utilites.

No way would I let someone move in without verifying income. I've been in this business 30 years, and have caught more than enough people not telling the truth on applications even though we tell them we verify everything. They are taking the chance that we will be one of those companies that say they check but then don't, because they can't qualify anywhere else. It's a huge risk not to get pay stubs or proof of funds. We are small, but I can't imagine 2 evictions a month! We've had only one that went to court in 30 years, and we inherited that tenant from another manager. Someone needs to take the riskier tenants, just not going to be us